Neurodevelopmental Parent-Infant Psychotherapy and Mindfulness

This innovative book explains and introduces the use of mindfulness in therapeutic work with parents and babies, covering issues such as feeding, crying, sleeping and relating, as well as other developmental challenges which affect family life, as practiced in both clinical sessions and in the home. The book is divided into two parts. Part 1 introduces: (1) what parent-infant psychotherapy is, its origin and evolution; (2) mindfulness, which consists in paying attention in a purposeful way in the present moment and not judgementally; and (3) the development and maturation of the brain and nervous system and how they are affected by the environment in utero and after birth. Part 2 then goes on to explore a range of topics such as parental mental illnesses, immigration, dislocation, loss, guilt, substance misuse, abuse, post-natal depression, congenital malformations and the role of fathers. It describes how these factors impact the parental relationship with, and the healthy development of the infant, drawing from relevant research to demonstrate the effectiveness of parent-infant psychotherapy and mindfulness. The practice of psychoanalytic psychotherapy aided by mindfulness is a useful intervention for distressed families with infants, while a mindful approach to oneself and one's baby can ease parental anxiety and free-loving capacities. Neurodevelopmental Parent-Infant Psychotherapy and Mindfulness is an essential resource for clinicians and researchers working on parent and infant relations and will also appeal to curious new or future parents.

Maria Pozzi Monzo, born in Italy, trained in London at the Tavistock Clinic, BPF/BAP, where she now lectures. She has worked in CAMHS, PIP-UK and is currently at the School of Infant Mental Health. She is also a trainer in parent-infant psychotherapy in Italy and Switzerland. Her many publications include The Buddha and the Baby (2015). She was winner of the Los Angeles, Frances Tustin Memorial Prize in 1999.

Foreword by Ajahn Brahmavara Foreword by Stella Acquarone Introduction Chapter 1 What is parent-Infant psychotherapy? Chapter 2 What is Mindfulness? Chapter 3 The development of the infant's brain and nervous system Chapter 4 Pregnancy Chapter 5 From unbearable, persecutory guilt to tolerable, reparative guilt in working with severely damaged babies and their parents Chapter 6 Immigration, Dislocation and Loss Chapter 7 Parental Mental Illness Chapter 8 Babies with severe congenital disabilities Chapter 9 Fathers Chapter 10 Breaking the cycle